One must concede that, as a tactic, lying to the public about the beneficial nature of hemp and confusing them as to its relationship with "marijuana" has been very successful. The Toxic Alternative to Natural Fibers The late 1920s and 1930s saw continuing consolidation of power into the hands of a few large steel, oil and chemical (munitions) companies of cannabis seeds. The U.S. federal government placed much of the textile production for the domestic economy in the hands of its chief munitions maker, DuPont. The processing of nitrating cellulose into explosives is very similar to the process for nitrating cellulose into synthetic fibers and plastics.